Onondaga County, Syracuse Rat Control Situation:
Hi. I have recently noticed poop in one area of my garage which is also right next to where I have piled up a bunch of stuff I planned to sale at a yard sale so it is very possible there is more that I am not seeing easily within that stuff. We live next to a lot of undeveloped wooded land where we know there are a good bit of deer and presumably many varieties of wildlife and some cats we see around our house have killed a few rats lately but I looked at your rat droppings and what I saw in my garage doesn't seem to fit into the rat poop pictures or descriptions I found on your site. I an sending in separate email to see if you can tell me what I am most likely dealing with. My house is in a rural area outside Syracuse NY.
David: I live in Northern New York State and recently purchased a home that has have roof rats, and I've been told when the rats are beaten back some, the mice will come. There is already evidence of this, as I've noticed half eaten mice carcasses at various points. I hired a pest control company to trap the rats moving forward, but their plan is not as systematic and comprehensive as yours, so I want to do the sealing up myself. Though the task is daunting because I live in the country and my house has a Spanish tile roof that many describe a porous, I have done this before and think I can at least slow the problem to a light crawl. That said, I'm interested in equipment recommendations. I notice you use full body jump suits and face masks. What brands do you use? And your vacuum, does it require a hepa filter. You mention multiple speeds, will I need various vacuums to do the job? Can you recommend people who do this in Sonoma County (Santa Rosa City), California? thanks, John
Syracuse Rat Control Tip of The Week
Different Types Of Rat Snap Traps
Spring traps for big rodents, such as rats or squirrels, are powerful enough to break the animal's neck or spine. They may break human fingers too, while a customary spring-based mousetrap is probably not going to break a human finger. Rat spring traps may not be sufficiently delicate to spring when a mouse takes the bait.
A rat cage trap is a metal enclosure box-shaped gadget that is planned principally to get rats without killing them. Food bait (not poisoned) is placed in the cage trap. When an animal gets into the cage and moves towards the bait, the component triggers and shuts the door. The animal is caught alive and without injury. The animal can be relocated somewhere else or killed subsequently.
Glue traps are non-poisonous sticky glue that are spread over card sheets and kept in places rats visit, which gets them stuck to it when they pass over it. The rat will die from dehydration and suffocation. A bait may likewise be set on the cardboard to attract the rats.
Another type of non-deadly trap is where the wires used in its construction are cut and framed into a funnel shape directed to the cage's body. This design is usually dome-shaped with the funnel at the crown. Rats are very adaptable and can push through the smaller opening into the confine, but can't escape because of the closures of the wires poking them in the face. The advantage of this design is that it can catch more than one rat in a setting.
